MARFA – Agave Festival Marfa 2019 kicks off in great style with a pool party at Bar Nadar on Saturday, June 1st at 8pm featuring a guest appearance by the legendary actor, comedian and Chicano art enthusiast, Cheech Marin.
Entrance is free for adults 21 and up, and there will be food and drink specials all night. Perhaps better known for his association with a different plant, Marin has expressed his love for the agave by recently becoming the spokesperson for Tres Papalote, a spirit company bottling mezcal from two varieties of agave, Cupreata and Espadin, which they produce in the Mexican states of Guerrero and Oaxaca.
Marin will be appearing at the pool between 8pm and midnight to introduce Tres Papalote Mezcal and will kick off nine days of cultural programs celebrating the role of the agave in the culture of the Chihuahuan Desert region. Marin will also be appearing at the Crowley Theater on Sunday, June 2nd at 6pm, where he will discuss his life as an artist, comedian and art enthusiast with Josh Franco, the National Collector at the Archives of American Art at the Smithsonian in Washington D.C. Franco, who was born in Odessa, but whose grandparents and parents were raised in Marfa, has been working with Marin on a project related to Marin’s large collection of Chicano Art, believed to be the largest single collection in the country. Marin’s advocacy for Chicano Art has left a legacy comparable to his work as an artist. He has overseen the publication of numerous books on Chicano Art, including Chicano Visions: American Painters on the Verge, Chicanitas: Small Paintings from the Cheech Marin Collection and Los Tejanos: Chicano Art from the Cheech Marin Collection, all of which are designed to introduce great artists to a larger public. Marin and Franco will also discuss the California and Texas styles of Rasquache, a word derived from the Aztec language, which is sometimes used to refer to aspects of Chicano folk art, especially the re-use of recycled and cast-away materials to produce objects of beauty and renewed significance.
Marin will also discuss his recent autobiography, “Cheech is Not My Real Name … But Don’t Call Me Chong!” in which he addresses his many accomplishments and associations as an actor and comedian, as well his years growing up in South Central Los Angeles, his anti-war and other activism, and his years of involvement in one of the most influential comedy duos in history. Additionally, Marin describes the great influence that discovering pottery had on his life, which led to his great and abiding love for art.
As with most of the cultural events for Agave Festival, these events are free and open to the public, though capacity is limited to the maximum number of people allowed in each of the two venues. You can learn more about the full Agave Festival program in this paper and at the website, AgaveMarfa.com.